Rest
by The One And Only Lobster
Summary: For the Mai/Zuko fic exchange on LJ. Some pressing issues keep Zuko awake. One-shot, post-war five years.


A/N: Written for silly-izzy-me during the Mai/Zuko fic exchange on LJ. The prompts (that I used) were, "Adulthood (being parents maybe?)" and "Any time with them between The Awakening and... well, beyond. That could be them together, separate; they could be arguing, or happy, or lonely... I just kind of want their emotions brought out, I suppose."

Yes, I cheated a bit on the "parents" thing, heh. -hides-

Thank you to The All Real Numbers Symbol for providing me with some beta help and MASSIVE thanks to my friend Becky who helped me beta and polish this thing to a shine! -squish- Thanks, luff!

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Rest

Rest evaded Zuko. Staring at the canopy of the bed he shared with his wife of over four years, Zuko contemplated the recent days' events. Between Mai's strangely tired demeanor and Katara's secretive one, Zuko was at his wit's end. He would never understand women, he decided, staring enviously at a blissfully asleep Mai, but the knowledge didn't stop him from worrying. She was acting strangely, and he didn't know why. It confused and frustrated him. Sighing once more, Zuko rolled over. He watched Mai's slow breathing for a minute or two before snuggling himself closer to her warm body, his chest against her back and his arm around her waist. Eyes closed, he lay like that for several minutes trying to slow his breathing, clear his mind, and join her in slumber, but he just couldn't stop the worries racing through his brain.

"Okay, universe, you win," he muttered. "I guess I'm not going to sleep tonight."

Pulling himself away from Mai, he got out of bed. He located a robe and slipped it on over his pajamas, then walked quietly out onto the balcony and leaned on the railing, looking out over his darkened city. A few places were still lit up--pubs, mostly--but for the most part everything was quiet and still.

Presently a silent figure joined him. Mai came up softly behind him and put her arms around his waist, sliding her hands inside the robe and under the pajamas so her slightly cool hands came into contact with his warm skin. Smiling, he turned around and they kissed deeply.

"Did I wake you up? I didn't mean to," Zuko said as they pulled apart.

"I was about half-asleep when you mumbled something into my ear and climbed out of bed," Mai replied, looking up at him. "Is something bothering you?"

"I couldn't stop thinking. Worrying." Zuko explained.

"About what?" Mai asked. "Everything seems to be calming down, for once."

She moved around to his side and leaned against him. Putting his arm around her side, they looked out over the city together. He stood silent for a moment, trying to figure out how to say what he wanted to say.

"I was worried about you. You've been acting strange lately," he said finally.

"If you were worried, why didn't you say something?" Mai asked.

"Well, I didn't really start to notice until the day before yesterday, and at first I thought I was just imagining it. But then I started thinking about the past couple of weeks, and I was sure I wasn't, except nobody else seemed to notice. So this morning I asked Katara, but she just made me more worried."

"Zuko," Mai cut in.

"And we were apart all day, so--"

"_Zuko_," Mai said, louder this time.

"I haven't..." he trailed off. "Yeah?" he asked.

"You ramble when you're upset," Mai said patiently, then asked, "Why didn't you just wake me up and say something when you came in to go to bed?"

"You seemed like you really needed the sleep," Zuko said, suddenly feeling small.

Mai rolled her eyes. "Zuko, that's the dumbest thing I've ever heard. If you're ever that worried about me again, just ask. I don't care if you wake me up."

Zuko put his arms around her and rested his chin on her head. "So, are you OK?" he asked.

Mai looked up at him. "Aside from being pregnant, I'm fine," she said.

Mind going blank, Zuko tried to grasp the word "pregnant." A small part of his brain was rejoicing, but a much larger part was suddenly panicking. Realizing he had stopped breathing, he took a few steadying breaths.

"Your enthusiasm is overwhelming," Mai said after a moment.

Finally regaining his voice, Zuko said, "You're pregnant? As in having a baby? We're going to be parents?"

She looked at him strangely. "Yes, as in having a baby. That's what pregnant usually means." Studying his face, she asked, "What's wrong? I thought you needed an heir. _Wanted_ one."

"I did! I _do_! It's great news!" Zuko protested. "It's just... what if I'm not a good father? What if I'm like _my_ father?"

To his surprise, Mai laughed. "Zuko, you're not going to be a bad father. In fact, you're going to be a great father."

"How do you know? You haven't had the baby. We aren't parents. For all you know, I could turn out to be a terrible father!" he said in rising tones, the panic starting to break through.

"You're really worried about this, aren't you?" she asked. When he nodded, she sighed and said, "Zuko, come here." She led him back inside to the couch in their moonlit room and sat down. Numbly, he sat down beside her and she looked him straight in the eye.

"You're not going to be a bad father," she said sternly. Zuko started to protest, but she went on. "First of all, the fact that you're even worried about it proves you're not like your father. Second, you're great with my brother. He loves you. He once told me he thinks you are the greatest brother-in-law he could ever have, and he's glad I married you."

"Really, Tom-tom said that?" Zuko asked, slightly distracted. For some reason, knowing that his little brother-in-law felt that way reassured him a bit.

"Yes. He adores you. You're just about the only adult who pays him any attention, and on top of that, you're Fire Lord. You're his hero, Zuko. And you're more of a father to him than Dad is," Mai said.

Zuko smiled slightly, reassured even more. "What's the third thing?" he asked.

"Oh, I don't know, I thought maybe you might have picked up something from your _uncle_," Mai said.

"Oh. Right," Zuko said, feeling stupid. He decided to change the subject. "When are we going to tell him?"

"I don't know. I was thinking of waiting to tell everybody until we're sure everything is okay, but we can let him know any time. He doesn't count as 'everybody,' after all," Mai said.

"I want to let him know as soon as possible. But what do you mean, 'until we're sure everything is okay?' There's nothing wrong with the baby, is there?" Zuko asked, suddenly facing a new worry. He was starting to get the idea that this parenthood thing might be one worry after another.

"No, Katara says the baby is fine so far. But I told you about my mother and the two miscarriages she had between me and my brother."

"I forgot about that. That won't happen to our baby, will it? What did Katara say?" Zuko asked with concern.

"She doesn't think there will be any problems, but she's keeping a close eye on me anyway. She knows how important it is for you to have a healthy heir, and sometimes that sort of thing runs in families, but right now she says we have no reason to worry and the baby is perfectly healthy," Mai reassured him.

Zuko smiled. "Good," he said. Wanting reassurance, he asked, "And you're healthy too, right?"

"I told you already, I'm fine," Mai said, leaning against him with a yawn.

Zuko put his arm around her, then asked, "So, when exactly do we become parents?"

"I'm about ten weeks along, so the baby will be born in early summer. Around your birthday, actually," Mai replied.

"So that would be..." Zuko said, trying to count backwards.

"Aang's birthday," Mai finished.

"Oh, yeah," Zuko said, grinning. "That was a _great_ party."

Mai chuckled. "I agree. Aang should really have more than one birthday a year."

"Yeah, he needs to make up for the hundred he missed," Zuko said, still smiling.

They were silent for a minute. Then Zuko said, "Katara knows, and I know. Does anybody else know? Your mom, maybe?"

"No, just you, Katara, and I suppose the servants who haven't been doing some laundry for the past two months," Mai said, trying to stifle another yawn. "I asked Katara not to tell anybody and to let me tell you myself. We can tell your uncle right away, but I'd rather not tell Mom until we have to."

"OK," Zuko agreed, stroking Mai's hair.

She didn't say anything else, and in a few minutes she was breathing deeply again. Careful not to wake her, he settled into a more comfortable position on the couch. Thinking about all he had learned in the past half hour, he started to drift off. He realized suddenly that he wasn't really worried anymore. No matter what happened, he, Mai, and in a few months their child would face it and get through it together. With this thought to comfort him, he fell into a deep, contented rest.


End file.
